Selected fellows will receive funding and technical support from the U.S. National Laboratories
Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy
September 15, 2025
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WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the opening of application portals for the Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program (LEEP) 2026 Cohort, a two-year, funded fellowship that supports the next generation of energy entrepreneurs. Selected fellows will work to advance technologies that make energy more affordable, bolster national security, and give American manufacturers a competitive edge in global markets.
“Our most pressing energy challenges will not be solved through the deployment of existing technologies alone,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Lou Hrkman. “America is in critical need of new innovations, and LEEP has become one of DOE’s most successful initiatives to promote innovation, entrepreneurship, and sound business practices.”
LEEP embeds innovators with the U.S. National Laboratories, where they conduct collaborative research and development with lab scientists, receive training in entrepreneurship, and benefit from valuable networking opportunities that can help them overcome the many obstacles to commercial success faced by early-stage energy and manufacturing startups.
Since the program launched its first cohort in 2015, LEEP has supported 212 fellows through four national labs and their corresponding nodes. LEEP alumni have gone on to launch 182 new businesses, create 3,840 jobs, and attract $4.2 billion in follow-on funding.
Interested participants can apply to more than one LEEP node. Visit each LEEP node’s homepage for information on upcoming webinars and to learn how to apply:
- Chain Reaction Innovations at Argonne National Laboratory (Lemont, Illinois)
- Cyclotron Road at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley, California)
- Innovation Crossroads at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (Oak Ridge, Tennessee)
- West Gate at National Renewable Energy Laboratory (Golden, Colorado)
LEEP is managed and funded by DOE’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, with additional funding from offices across DOE.
To learn more about LEEP, visit the program landing page.